OAKLAND — Observations from the Nuggets’ 122-79 loss to Golden State on Monday afternoon at Oracle Arena.

Sticking to Wilson and Afflalo. While Ty Lawson is the Nuggets’ leading scorer, the bulk of the team’s scoring comes from the wing. Golden State knew that, and one off their top priorities was to remove wing scoring from the game. That meant getting to Arron Afflalo and Wilson Chandler early to not allow them to get going. And that task fell on the shoulders of Klay Thompson, Harrison Barnes, Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green and Shaun Livingston. Their first order of business was to crowd both players, both good spot-up shooters, and make them shoot on the move. Read more…

Randy Foye returned to action on Saturday but forgot to watch out for teammates’ shenanigans. (Photo By John Leyba/The Denver Post)

There’s never a bad time for a good practical joke. The Nuggets, more than most teams, are acutely aware of this.

That’s why Randy Foye’s return on Saturday night after missing 26 straight games with a quad injury was the perfect time for one of the oldest tricks in NBA players’ books: The Fake Substitution. Read more…

Ty Lawson is fouled by Andrew Wiggins Andrew Wiggins while driving the lane for a shot late in the fourth quarter Saturday. (David Zalubowski, The Associated Press)

Analysis from the Nuggets’ 113-105 loss to the Timberwolves on Saturday night at the Pepsi Center.

When a good thing starts as a questionable thing. The return of shooting guard Randy Foye to the rotation after a 26-game absence was good news. The Nuggets needed the extra shooting, floor spacing and ball handling that he provides. But what they didn’t fully know was just how one player’s inclusion back into the rotation could throw everything the existing players knew about subsitution patterns and combinations and the chemistry they’ve come to create, out of whack. It’s like a car whose perfectly good alignment starts to pull in one direction. Read more…

When: It’s not often these days that a player from the Orlando Magic gets a look, but Nikola Vucevic had an eye-opening week. And because of that, he is The Denver Post’s NBA player of the week.

What’s up: In four games, Vucevic averaged 27.5 points, 12.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists as the Magic went 2-2. He shot 63.6 percent from the field.

Background: In four NBA seasons, Vucevic has been a steady climber, and this season he’s starting to gain the attention that his game deserves. A double-double machine, he leads the league in the category this season. One of his most significant “doubles” came in a win over the Chicago Bulls on Jan. 12. He had 33 points and 11 rebounds as he wreaked havoc on a formidable Bulls frontcourt of Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah. Two nights later, Vucevic posted 25 points and 12 rebounds against Dwight Howard in Orlando’s win over the Rockets.

Dempsey’s take: Vucevic is one of my favorite players. He’s not a household name, but he might become one. He’s so consistent for a young player, and while NBA teams know about him, he still gets his numbers almost every night. He’s as tough as they come in the paint and always stays on an even keel. It’s just a pleasure to watch a player go out and do his job every night. He’s part of a talented, young nucleus of players at Orlando that has that team on the rise.

DALLAS — On Wednesday night, Brian Shaw was a frustrated Nuggets coach after watching his team part like the Red Sea on many occasions defensively, allowing repeated drives to the rim, even though his team nabbed a victory over the Mavericks. And even though they held Dallas to 41 percent from the field, which isn’t shabby.

But the Nuggets, through their five-game winning streak, have been successful largely because, for the second significant stretch this season their defense has tightened. They are a plus-11.6 during the stretch, holding opponents to 98.2 points per game. The Nuggets are 10-2 this season when holding opponents under 100 points. Read more…

Turnover story. After a solid start to the season in holding down turnovers, the Nuggets have taken steps back in that area of late. On Wednesday they committed 21 turnovers, which the Magic converted into 18 points. Film study reveals that Orlando should be given a credit for being active with their hands and in getting into passing lanes to force some of those miscues. But others could have been prevented.

The bad pass turnover was the Nuggets’ worst enemy, as they were simply attempting passes that had no shot of getting to the target. Orlando forced a few with pressure defense, but many of the 12 didn’t have to happen. Things like getting into the air with nowhere to go and having to force a pass that got picked off. There were four lost ball turnovers, three traveling and two screening turnovers. From Dec. 1 to today, the Nuggets have turned the ball over fifth-most in the NBA, at 15.2 per game. Read more…

Mozgov, who arrived in Denver via the Carmelo Anthony trade in February 2011, grew into one of the Nuggets’ most top assets after filling in for injured starter JaVale McGee last season. In his four-plus seasons in Denver, Mozgov averaged 6.8 points on 51.8 percent shooting from the field, with 5.2 rebounds 1.0 blocks per game.

Wednesday’s trade reunites the big man with his Russian national team coach, David Blatt, and leaves Nuggets fans with a slew of memories, on the court and off. Let’s review:

The Nuggets are 2-0 since coach Brian Shaw first publicly discussed pushing the time of his team’s shootarounds back from the traditional morning walkthrough to the new afternoon sessions.

Officially, they are 2-1 because they didn’t have one in their New Year’s Day game at Chicago either — and lost — but most important to Shaw is how the Nuggets are playing. They’ve had just one bad quarter in the last three games (the fourth in Chicago), and in each one they’ve gotten off to fast starts.

“I didn’t want to just measure it in wins and losses,” Shaw said. “In the Chicago game I thought our energy was good to start the game out. And it’s been really good at the start of all of these games. So, we’re keeping an eye on it.”

Oklahoma City will give the Cavaliers a protected future first-round draft pick and send guard Lance Thomas to the Knicks, league sources said. As part of the trade, the Cavaliers will send rookie center Alex Kirk, forward Lou Amundson and a 2019 second-round pick to the Knicks, sources said.

The Knicks are also expected to waive center Samuel Dalembert, according to Wojnarowski.

While it initially appeared Reggie Jackson, a former standout at Palmer High in Colorado Springs, would be headed to New York, his name was not included among the pieces of the trade, though some are reporting that he could still be unloaded. Jackson filled in for the Thunder while Russell Westbrook was out with a knee injury and averaged 20.2 points, 7.8 assists and 5.2 rebounds in 13 games as a starter to all but save Oklahoma City’s season. As a result, his market value went up, and he’s set to be a free agent this summer.

The deal, which is primarily a salary dump for the Knicks, sparked a wave of reactions on Twitter because Phil Jackson actually found a way to unload Smith, a former Nugget who has long been troublesome off the court and has played in only 24 games this season because of injury. In those games, he posted his lowest player efficiency rating (11.7) since his rookie season, according to Basketball-Reference, while averaging 10.9 points on 40.2 percent shooting from the field and 35.6 percent from 3-point range.

(It’s worth noting that Smith is the Nuggets’ all-time leader in attempted (2,010) and made (768) 3-point field goals. His 38.2 percent from three ranks No. 8 in franchise history. Randy Foye surpassed Smith last season to rank No. 2 with the most 3-pointers in a season (189).

But enough of the boring details. Let’s get to the fun part: The reactions. Read more…

Timofey Mozgov said he doesn’t allow his friends to talk about trade speculation about him. (David Zalubowski, The Associated Press)

Timofey Mozgov has one rule for his buddies who talk about trade speculation that involves him: Take it somewhere else.

The Nuggets’ center the subject of trade chatter for much of this season. The most recent has concerned him possibly going to Cleveland since Cavaliers coach David Blatt once was his coach on the Russian National Team and the Cavs recently lost big man Anderson Varejao for the season because of a torn Achilles.

When: If there’s a game, Atlanta point guard Jeff Teague is starting and usually playing well. His efforts in the evaluation period of Dec. 27-Jan. 2 have earned him The Denver Post’s player of the week.

What’s up: In three games, all Hawks victories, Teague was all over the court, stuffing the stat box with averages of 24.7 points, 8.7 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game. Teague was as efficient as they come, taking just 14.7 shots per game to earn that 24.7-point average. He shot a sizzling 54.5 percent from the field. And his impact was huge when he was on the court. Teague was a plus-16 for the period.

Alec Burks’ impressive start to the 2014 NBA season is officially over.

The former University of Colorado standout and current Utah Jazz guard will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, the team announced Tuesday.

“Alec’s long-term health has been our top priority throughout this process, and although it is unfortunate that we will be without his services on the court the rest of this season, we commend Alec’s commitment and continued effort to play through considerable pain to this point,” said Jazz General Manager Dennis Lindsey. “After continued consultation with our medical staff, Alec and his representation, we have unanimously agreed that it would be most prudent for Alec to have this procedure performed now in order to ensure that he will be healthy and ready for the start of next season.”

Burks, who missed the last two games because of the injury, was averaging 13.9 points and career-highs of 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists this season. He was also shooting a career-high 38.2 percent from three-point range

In October, the Jazz signed Burks to a four-year, $42 million extension.

The 23-year-old was selected 12th overall by Utah in the 2011 draft after playing two seasons at Colorado, where he was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year in 2010 and was awarded All-Big 12 first-team honors in 2011.

Kobe Bryant and the Lakers take on the Nuggets at Pepsi Center on Tuesday. (Stephen Dunn, Getty Images)

Brian Shaw shook his head at the mere thought.

Last week, as Lakers star and surefire Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant sat some games out to rest, an unusual narrative started to gain steam: Were these Lakers better without him? Lakers players were asked. Lakers coach Byron Scott was asked. It was debated on national television. Read more…

When: Christmas week was no break for Derrick Rose, but fans might look back at it as his breakout week, which has landed him in The Post’s player of the week winner’s circle for the first time in a very long while.

What’s up: In three games, all Bulls victories, Rose averaged 24.7 points, 4.3 assists and 1.0 steals. He shot 58 percent from the field and 92 percent from the free-throw line. And most important for Bulls fans, he did all of this in 30.3 minutes per game, a display of durability that has been a constant worry with his many injuries.

Background: The Rose story is a well-traveled tale. It begins with MVP riches and then dissolves into an injury-riddled last two seasons. He’s back on more of a regular basis this season, and he’s starting to round into the spectacular form that all basketball fans remember. Of the most concern to him is maintaining his health, and he has generally been able to do that this season.

Dempsey’s take: Rose’s play was critical in Chicago establishing itself as a team to beat in the East. Victories over Toronto, which leads the Eastern Conference, and Washington, which is third in the East, were the highlights. Rose is starting to show the explosion that made him an instant star. He has more help (especially Jimmy Butler and Pau Gasol), but with this rate of improvement, and with his team playing as well as it is, don’t completely discount Rose making a late run at another MVP this season.

It started with his 20-point, 14-rebound outing in a loss at Brooklyn on Tuesday. It peaked with his career night of 26 points and 25 rebounds (12 on the offensive end) in a victory over the Timberwolves on Friday.

Since their talk, the Manimal has come alive and that guy who had temporarily replaced him the last couple of months vanished.

“After 26 points, I want him to understand that we didn’t call plays for him,” Shaw said after Friday’s game against the Wolves. “He got those 26 points going after offensive rebounds every single time. And probably four times, I would say tongiht, the ball got volleyballed around and it fell right in his hands and he was able to put it right back up and in. But that was just because he put himself in the right place by being in there in the first place. That’s what I want him to take away from that.”

Faried seemed to hear loud and clear, and even he admitted the talk went a long way in helping him regain his swagger on the court.

“It helped me. I can’t even lie, it helped 110 percent,” Faried said. “We went to the back and had a conversation. He had some stuff he wanted to say, I had some stuff I wanted to say, and we came to an agreement. Now it helps just ease my mind and I can just go play my game. It is now more just like ‘go play my game and everything else will follow.'”Read more…

To those unfamiliar with Zach LaVine, a quick YouTube search will provide an entertaining glimpse of his mind-boggling athleticism, and size. The kid can jump out of the gym, and his natural talents attracted numerous suitors ahead of the June draft.

The Nuggets were one of them.

LaVine worked out for the Nuggets with the hope of landing a roster spot in Denver, but the Nuggets ultimately decided to pass, trading down on draft day and letting the Timberwolves take LaVine.

Ahead of the Wolves’ meeting with the Nuggets at Pepsi Center on Friday, Shaw was asked about that pre-draft workout and his overall impression of LaVine, Minnesota’s starting point guard while Ricky Rubio nurses an ankle injury.

“I think we took as good and as long a look as we could. We were impressed by his workout,” Shaw said. “There were quite a few guys within that range that we looked at. But more so with me, I was just an observer. I’ve always said that whoever we put out on their on the floor, I just want to coach and leave that to the front office. So that’s the direction that they decided to go in, and I think that everyone saw his reaction when he was drafted by the T-Wolves. But I think that now that he’s there, he’s getting an opportunity to play and start, I’m sure he’s happy that he ended up where he is.”Read more…

As one of the top-ranked power forwards in the nation and a McDonald’s All-American coming out of high school, JJ Hickson went on to play one season at North Carolina State, under then coach Sidney Lowe. He averaged 14.8 points with 8.5 rebounds while shooting 59.1 percent from the field, best in the Atlantic Coast Conference that year, with the Wolfpack before entering the 2008 draft and being selected by the Cavaliers with the 19th overall pick.

Lowe, now an assistant with the Minnesota Timberwolves, may have only had one season to gauge Hickson’s NBA potential, but he’s watched him over the last six-plus years in the pros and has seen enough to know that the Nuggets forward can be better.

“I think he’s doing OK,” Lowe said after the Timberwolves’ morning shootaround Friday. “I think he can be better. I know he can be better. I haven’t had a chance to talk to him to find out what’s going on, but he can be better.”

Hickson, who has played in 21 games this season, enters Friday’s game against Minnesota averaging 7.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, his lowest marks since 2011-12, when he was in Sacramento.

So what’s missing this year?

“Uh — I’m being a coach now — I just watch him sometimes and I see him not going after a couple things that he should as aggressively as I know he can,” Lowe said. “I’m an armchair coach right now, sitting there watching his games and just talking to the television: ‘J, you should have had that rebound,’ ‘J, you should have had that loose ball.’ Just little stuff.”

Chris Dempsey arrived at The Denver Post in Dec. 2003 after seven years at the Boulder Daily Camera, where he primarily covered the University of Colorado football and men's basketball teams. A University of Colorado-Boulder alumnus, Dempsey covers the Nuggets and also chips in on college sports.

Nicki Jhabvala is the Sports Digital News Editor for The Denver Post. Before arriving in Denver, she spent five years at Sports Illustrated working primarily as its online NBA editor, and she was most recently the overnight home page editor at the New York Times.